Transformable automobile-tractor



D. M. 8. F. R. BROCKWAY. TRANSFORMABLE AUTOMOBILE TRACTOR.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 25, P916.

1,388,148. I PatentedAug. 16,1921.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

D. M. & F. R. BROCKWAY.

TRANSFORMABLE AUTOMOBILE TRACTOR.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 25, I916.

Patented Aug.

2 $HEETSSHET 2.

a w, 3 6 3 6 7 3 I 2 M 3 -a... u z W U J a m t 5 6 3 J \x w a F. a 4 3,5 i 4 4 I 9 1 m 1 '2 m 5 M 4 1 I 0 4. 4, 5 a x Z 4 u 1 4 N l M 4 6 3 3J a 3 I .Fbwfi. Brockwag UNITED STATES 1 PATENT... OFFiCE.

Don M. BRQGKWAY Ann FOSS R. BRocxwAYj or LOVS Anenrns, CALIFORNIA.

TRANSFORMABLE AUTOMOBILE-TRACTOR.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we, DON M. BRooKwAY. andFoss R. BROOKWAY, citizens of the United States, residing at LosAngeles, in the countyof'Los .Angeles and State of California,haveinvented a new and" use ful Transformable Automobile-Tractor, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a device that is transformable in a practicalway by the simple addition and subtraction of parts. to constituteatractor in one instance, and an automobile in. another instance.

An object of the invention is. to provide a novel attachment adaptedfor. convenient application to' the rear part'of an automobile frameor'chassis, for'the purpose. of substituting tractor wheels for theautomo bile traction wheels and that will bring thesame 'into practicalcooperation with the power transmission of the automobile so that thepower of; the automobile maybe applied through low gear for driving thetractorwheels at low speed with high power.

The invention comprises the combination with common. structuralautomobile elements, of certain mechanism whereby the common automobileelements or parts. can be made to do service as practical parts of thetractor.

An object is to provide? means whereby the owner of an'automobile may beable to transform the same into 'a tractor as occa- Y sion may requireand may'restore the automobile parts to their original use withverylittle loss of time and labor. v

The invention comprises an attachment for an automobile whereby by theremoval of therear automobile wheels and the ap plication of theattachment with tractor the subjoined detail description and claims.

3 The invention may-be carried out in various ways and will beillustrated herein in two of'the forms contemplated. The invention may Sbe applied 7 with a straight-tract0r axle or with a crank shaped tractoraxlegand the crank 01 intermediate to the rails 5; in anywelhknownmanner 11 0 portions ofthe crank tractor axle may be arranged eitherbelow or above the level of the spindles of said cranktractor. axle andabove or below thechassis or. automobile frame. p Y

It is unnecessary to show all-the forms and therefore only onearrangement. of the straight tractoraxleand one of the crank. theirhangers will be. I p 65. of the invention is to,pr ovidee tractor axleand shown.- 7

An object means whereby the tractor :axleimay be,

made to directly support the greater po tion ofja heavy load or weightto becarried by the, tractor; and toallow such, heavy weightgor load tobe carried by. a chassis thatis supported by the light spring com mon toautomobiles. I V

The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention.- g c Figure 1 is afragmental side elevation of a transformable automobile tractorexemplifying thisinvention as arranged for use asatractor. Fig. '2 is anenlarged sectional elevation showingmore fully in detail, certain partsof 'therear portion of the dGVlCGgShOWI]. in Fig. 1. g 'f Fig. 3 is afragmentalplan-on the-scale of Fig. 2 ofparts shown inFig. 2. V

Fig. 4 is a fra'gmental rear elevation fro line m*m, Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a detailelevation in section on 7 line :0 Fig.3. 7 I Fig. 6 isa fra'gmental plan showing a transformable automobile tractor of anotherform omitting the detached automobile traction wheels. i

Fig. 7 is a fragmental'sectional elevation of the rear portion of atransformable automobile tractor of the form shown in Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a sectional detail of the shift able tractor axle box shown inFigs. 6 and 7 The automobile frame or chassis .1 is wheel-supported atone end in-the usual manner having dirigible supporting wheels 2, onlyone-of which isishownin Fig. .1, from the nature of the view. Saidwheels are mounted on the dirigibleaxles 3 of usual constructionconnected to the. frame by the usual supporting means, includingthesprings. 1 '1 1 ,1 The frame 1 as shownincludes longitudinal rails 5 and.a rearcross bar'6 connected Specification of Le'ttersPatentQ Pate itedAug, 16519 21,

Application filed March 25, 1916. Serial No. 86,816. i

and supported by springs 7 which are connected by the usual shackles 8with the box ing 9 of the automobile driving rear axle 10. Sprocketwheels 11 are detachably fixed to the automobile driving axle 10 in anysuitable manner and are connected by sprocket chains 12 with sprocketwheels 13 fixed to tractor wheels 14 respectively that are journaled onthe tractor axle 15, so that rotation of the automobile axle 10 willdrive the tractor wheels 14 through the driving mechanism attachment 11,12, 13.

The tractor axle is intermediate the ends of the automobile frame landis adjustable therealong and relative to the first or driving axle 10.

The two axles are located at the rear or' may be variously constructed.In Figs. 2,,

3, 4 and 5 we have illustrated one form of hanger means for that purposeandin Figs. 6. 7, and 8 we have illustrated another form of hanger meansfor this purpose. Referring now particularly to vthe form ofconstruction shown in Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5 the frame-supporting hangersare in the form of levers 16 and are provided with hinge means 17 thatare fastened to the chassis rails 5, clip means18 being provided forthat purpose. Said clip means are adjustable along the frame andadjustably and detachably connect the hangers thereto.

Said levers are provided intermediate their ends with fulcrum journalboxes 19 which are adjustably and detachably fastened by clip means 20to. the intermediate body or crank member 21 of the tractor axle'15.Said intermediate crank member 21'is connected to the co-axial spindlemembers 15 of the shaft by bends 22. The forward arm 16 of the lever isconnected by the hinge 17 and clip 18 to the chassis forwardly of thespindles 15', and the rear ends of said levers are arranged to supportthe automobile driving axle 10. This isefiected in the form shown inFig. 2 by extending the arm 16 under- I neath the housing 23 of the axleand connecting said housing thereto by the clip means 24, thusdetaohably connecting the hanger and the automobile driving axletogether. 1

Said clips .are connected by longitudinally adjustablestay means 25 withthe spindles 15 by detachable journal boxes 26'. The extensible staysare provided with suitable ade justing means as'turn-buckles- 27 bywhich said stays can be extended or contracted in order to move thespindles 15 farther away from or closer to the automobile driving shaft10. v 7

Journal boxes 19 are adjustably secured by clip bolts 20 to the leversupports 16, 16 which may be of channel iron along which the b0xes 19may be adjusted by removing the bolts 20 and replacing them in the adjusting holes 28.

The transformable automobile tractor is provided with the usual powertransmission means indicated at 29, 30 supported by the usual braces 31and the device is also'pro vided with the usual brake mechanism 32, 33and 34. j

In practice when it is desired to transform the automobile into atractor the rear axle will be jacked up by a ack. not shown, andthetraction wheels 85 will be detached from the axle 10 and may beplaced anywhere desired, as for instance at the rear of the tonneau 36.1

The' hangers 16, 16' will then be connected by'their clips 18 and 24 tothe automobile frame and the housing of the automobile driving axle 10.The tractor axle will be connected to the lever arm 16 by the boxes 19and the adjustable stays 25 will be connected to the housing and to thespindles 15. Then the tractor wheels will be journaled on the outer endsof thespindles 15 and secured in the usual way. Linch-pins 37 andwashers '38 on the outside of the tractor wheel, and machine collars 39held by setscrews 40 on the inner sides of the wheels serve to hold thetractor wheels in place. The tractor sprocket-wheels 13 are fixed to ahub formed by a hollow pulley 41 fastened by rivets 42 to the tractorwheels 14. Said pulley 41 projects inwardly from the tractor wheels 14giving clearance for the sprocket-chains 12.

.By adjusting the stays 25 the sprocket chains 12 may be tightened orloosened as required. Y

In order to re-transform the machine for immediate use as an automobileit is only necessary to detach the tractor wheels from the forward oneof the two axles, and the detachable sprocket'wheels 11 from the rearone'of said two axles, and replace said sprocket wheels with theautomobile wheels 35. This may be done with or without removal of thetractor axle and its. appurtenances. By removing said tractor axle andthe adjuncts thereto," after the traction wheels have been applied asabove suggested, the automobile is restored to its original condition assuch;

In the forms shown in Figs. 6, and 8 the tractor axle 43 is straightfrom end to end and is adjustably' connected by clip means 44 withhanger means45. I

Said hanger means 45, are in turn connected by clip means 46 to theautomobile frame rails 5. Said hanger means 45 may be constructed ofchannel iron having a straight limb 47 in which an adjusting way formedby a block 48 is fixed by clips 46. Said block is provided with a slot50 widened at the top to receive the heads of bolts 51 and adapted toallow the bodies of said bolts to slip along the slots 50 to adjust thetractor axle 43 backward or forward as the case may demand. v

The hanger means 45 areconstituted of two members each bent to form anangle 52 that constitutes a seat for the housing 23 of the automobiledriving axle 10. The rear end of said hanger is extended fromthe angle52 up in the form of a crook 53 extending over the cross-bar 6.

An adjusting device in the form of a nutand-bolt 54 connected to theclip 44 and bearing against the slide 48, is provided so that by turningthe nut 54 the clip or box 44 may be moved forward or back when theclips 46 are loosened for that purpose.

When the device is used for a tractor it is desirable that considerableweight be located above the tractor axle to hold the tractor wheelsforcibly on the ground, and 'for this purpose we provide a detachablewater tank 55 connected by pipes 56, 57 for a circulation of waterthrough the radiator of the automobile engine 58 so that not only is theweight provided where required, but also an ample supply of'water forthe radiator is provided for desert and other use where it may beinconvenient to keep the radiator supplied with water.

In case a heavy load is to be supported by the heavy tractor wheels andaxle, the axle may be located at such point along the leverlike hangersas to adjust the weight to the automobile springs. The farther thetractor axle is brought away from the rear spring and the closer to thedirect connection of the lever with the chassis, the less will be thestrain on the spring. I

We claim:

1. The combination with an automobile frame and driving axle, of atractor axle, tractor wheels thereon, a hanger hinged to the automobileframe and carried by the tractor axle; said hanger supporting thedriving axle, and means connecting the' driving axle to the tractorwheels to drive the same.

2. The combination with an automobile frame and drlving axle, ofatractor axle,

tractor wheels thereon, a hanger hinged to the automobile frame andcarried by the tractor axle and supporting said frame and driving axleand means to drive the tractor wheels.

3. The combination with an automobile frame and an automobile drivingaxle therefor, of clip means adjustably connected to the frame, hangermeans hinged to said clip means and extending beneath and supporting thedriving axle, a tractor axle supporting the hanger, tractor wheels forthe tractor axle, and means connecting the driving axle with the tractorwheels to drive the same.

4. The combination with an automobile frame and an automobile drivingaxle there for, of clip means adjustably connected to the frame, hangermeans hinged to said clip means and extending beneath and supporting thedriving axle, a tractor axle supporting the hanger, tractor wheels forthe tractor axle, and means adjustably connecting thetractor axle anddriving axle.

5. The combination with an automobile frame and an automobile drivingaxle thereshaft tractor axle having co-axial spindles,

means connecting the crank portion between said spindles with theautomobile frame, tractor wheels on said spindles, means connecting thedrivin axle with the tractor wheels to drive said wheels, and means foradjustably connecting the spindles with the driving axle.

7 The combination with an automobile frame and driving axle, of a cranktractor axle having co-axial spindles, detachable tractor wheels on thetractor axle spindles, a hanger carried by the crank portion of thetractor axle and supporting the automobile frame and driving axle, anddetachable means for transmitting power from the driving axle to thetractor wheels.

In testimony whereof, we have hereunto set our hands at Los Angeles,California, this 14th day of March, 1916.

DON M. BROCKWAY. FOSS R. BROGKVVAY. Witness:

JAMES R. TOWNSEND.

